Last week, Vanessa and I were tasked with creating our own press-fit box using laser cutting. Prior to this assignment, I had never seen or used a laser cutter before. Saying that I was blown away by how the machine operated would be an understatement. It’s was so fascinating to me to see how a thin, focused laser beam can create patterns and geometries in detail into structural materials like wood. After going through the training for how to use the laser cutter, I realized that so many things that I had manually created in the past could be made easier if I knew how to laser cut. In this way, I was excited to add another machine experience to my toolbox!

Getting comfortable with Adobe Illustrator

In addition to using the laser cutter for the first time, I also learned how to use Adobe Illustrator. This design and layout software helps to create vector drawings for laser processing. While I still need to learn a lot about Adobe Illustrator, I had the opportunity to become familiar with it through this project. For the first step, I used makeabox.io to generate a box design based on my input parameters. To create a 4 in. X 4 in. X 4 in. box, I set the dimensions to 3.8 in. X 3.8 in. X 3.8 in. since I measure the wood thickness to be 0.2 in.

Setting the appropriate value for the kerf was a little tricky. During the training, I had learned that determining the kerf could be achieved by manually measuring it. To do this, I laser cut 10 equally spaced rectangles within a larger rectangle and then measured the small gap between the last rectangle and the border. I, then, took this value and divided it by 10 to determine the average kerf. During this session, I determined the kerf value to be 0.004 inches. However, after cutting two test pieces, I realized that the kerf value was too low causing the pieces to be loose. After discussing with others, I found that many people found success with a kerf value within the range of 0.006 inches and 0.009 inches. In this way, I selected my kerf value as 0.008 inches.

Once I generated my box layout, I imported it in Adobe Illustrator to customize each side. I wanted to create

a press-fit box that reflected a little bit about me, so I decided to design each side with a picture that relayed my interests. Using Project Noun, I selected different images and arranged them so that they fit in the center of each of the sides. I was a little bit picky with what I wanted so this part took a little longer that I was expecting (haha).

PAY ATTENTION TO THE SETTINGS!

After I was satisfied with how I wanted my box to look like, I was ready to laser cut. A critical component before laser cutting was selecting the right setting options. Since I wanted the edges of my box to be cut and the design on each of the sides to be etched, I knew that I had to select the appropriate settings accordingly. Being a little confused at first with how to direct the laser to cut along the sides and raster along the design, I ended up doing more work than needed. I first created a file where I had the box layout and directed the printer setting to cut along the edges (with a stroke size of 0.072 inches, speed of 5%, frequency of 10f, and power of 100%). Then, I created a second file that only contained the images at their desired locations and set the settings to raster (75% for both speed and power). It wasn’t until I had finished laser cutting that I had remembered that setting the raster and vector value already lets the laser cutter know where to etch and where to cut. Nevertheless, going through this experience made me understand how to use the software better as it allowed me to explore different tools and options that I would not have considered otherwise.

One of my favorite parts during this process was selecting the engraving speed and power that I wanted for

my box. Selecting different values can cause the etch to have more depth into the wood. Since I wanted a subtle engraving, I chose 75% for both the speed and the power. This setting would also help save time and create less wood burn on my images.

Laser Cutting Time!

Before laser cutting our box, Vanessa and I did a test run by laser cutting two sides of the box.

We first taped the wood to prevent burning on the edges and found that our settings worked really well. From here, we finally proceeded to laser cut our box! Seeing our box come to life was really exciting! I really enjoyed watching the laser cutter etch the Rice logo into the wood in such great detail!

Putting it all together!

Once the laser cutting was done, I carefully removed the tape and separated each of my six pieces. While I couldn’t wait to assemble the pieces, I was also a little scared at the possibility that the sides may not fit. As I started to put together the sides, I realized that joining the pieces was quite tough. Since I didn’t want to break any of the edges, I decided to use a hammer to gently tap the pieces into place. After 10 satisfying minutes of pressing the sides into a tight fit, I was finally done!

I am really proud of my box and love how it turned out. The dark edges give a nice contrast to the light wooden color of the box.

Press-Fit Box Cost Analysis

Below, I have provided a breakdown of the cost estimate for my Press-Fit Box.

Material Cost:

• Wood Piece (0.22 in X 2 ft X 2 ft) [1]: $7.48/lumbar X 0.5 = $3.74
• Painter’s Tape (12 inch X 60 yds) [2]: $37.95/60 yds X 2 yds = $1.265

The standard CO2 laser cutting machine lasts at least 3-5 years (depending on its use)[3]. Assuming that the Epilog laser cutting machine lasts 3 years, then the standard cost to use the machine each year is $9995/3 years. Since I used the machine for 1.5 hours, the laser cutter cost is $9995/8760 hours X 1.5 hours.

• (1 quantity) Laser Cutter [4]: $129.99 X 1 laser cutting machine = $9995
  • (1 quantity) Laser Cutter [4]: $9995/8760 hours X 1.5 hours= $1.711

Overall Material Cost: $6.716

Labor Time

1 hour for training

1.5 hours for designing box and printing

Total hours: 2.5 hours

Overall Labor Cost [5]: $7.25/hr X 2.5 hours = $18.125

 

Total Press-Fit Box cost: $24.841

 

[1] https://www.lowes.com/pd/1-4-in-Lauan-Plywood-Application-as-2-x-2/1000068901

[2] https://www.amazon.com/Painters-America-Printing-Removes-Cleanly/dp/B09GW7RBTZ/ref=sr_1_2_sspa?keywords=laser+masking+tape&qid=1664182847&sr=8-2-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUExVEZFSEFCQVdSVVhRJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwODYyNjcxRE5TRlpQTzREWlFMJmVuY3J5cHRlZEFkSWQ9QTAxMzAxNjYzVTVOVkpCRTdDVk81JndpZGdldE5hbWU9c3BfYXRmJmFjdGlvbj1jbGlja1JlZGlyZWN0JmRvTm90TG9nQ2xpY2s9dHJ1ZQ==

[3] https://laseruser.com/how-to-get-a-longer-life-from-your-laser-tube/#:~:text=All%20glass%20CO2%20laser%20tubes,and%20reduces%20the%20working%20life.

[4] https://shop.epiloglaser.com/collections/epilog-laser-engraving-and-cutting-systems/products/fusion-maker-12

[5] https://www.minimum-wage.org/texas#:~:text=The%20Texas%20minimum%20wage%20was,Federal%20Minimum%20Wage%20by%20reference